


...without a motive

by BriMac0518



Series: The Arcana - 50 Kisses [37]
Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Gender-Neutral Apprentice (The Arcana), M/M, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:13:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25517089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BriMac0518/pseuds/BriMac0518
Summary: Nope, no ulterior motives here. Not a one.
Relationships: Apprentice/Lucio (The Arcana), Lucio (The Arcana)/Reader, Lucio (The Arcana)/You
Series: The Arcana - 50 Kisses [37]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1531607
Comments: 12
Kudos: 97





	...without a motive

**Author's Note:**

> PLEASE NOTE: Do not repost my work anywhere. I do not give my permission.

If there was one thing you could say Lucio was beyond a shadow of a doubt, it was a bad liar. You’d learned all of his tells long ago despite his insistence that he simply didn’t have any. He couldn’t fool you though. The shifty eyes. The flushed cheeks. The way the fingers of his right hand twitched and he kept curling them into fists. No, he really couldn’t pull the proverbial wool over your eyes. Lucio equal parts hated and loved it.

“What do you want?” You arched a brow as you sat on the chaise, a book open across your lap and the sunlight streaming in from the wall of windows beside you. It glinted off the spires of the palace.

“Nothing.” Shifty eyes. Tell number one. You watched him as he stood just a few feet away, looking anywhere but at you as he spoke.

“You sure about that?” Setting your book aside after marking your place, you shifted onto your side, arm resting against the back of the chaise as you regarded your partner.

“Yep.” Tell number two. His cheeks turned a light shade of pink. At least he managed to look at you again and try to offer that winning grin of his that didn’t convince you for a second. 

“Lucio…” When the fingers of his right hand twitched, you knew he was close to finally breaking and telling you the truth. You weren’t sure what he needed to hide from you, but the longer he refrained from telling you, the more you worried.

“What?” That winning smile was faltering. He could tell you didn’t believe him and he was running out of steam when it came to being evasive. You sighed and shifted, moving to sit on the edge of the chaise with your feet resting flat on the floor.

“If something is wrong, you know that you can tell me, right?” You’d reached the point where you were genuinely worried because he kept hiding whatever was going through his mind from you.

“Yeah, I know.” He nodded, lifting his right hand to rub at the back of his neck awkwardly.

“So why don’t you tell me? If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine. Just don’t tell me nothing is on your mind when something clearly is. All you have to do is tell me you don’t want to talk about it.” You offered the words with a gentle smile, hoping to soothe his worries and perhaps coax out his concerns so that you could help him deal with them.

“I’m just… I’m not good with…feelings.” The word was delivered with a bit of a cringe. Lucio fell silent for a long moment before he moved to sit beside you and you made room for him without hesitation. He still wasn’t looking at you and was uncharacteristically quiet. You felt your concern grow until Lucio suddenly turned to face you. Then the count leaned in and his lips found yours.

Normally, when Lucio wanted something, he buttered you up with kisses and sweet nothings, but this was completely different. Lucio kissed you like you were precious. Like he was afraid he’d break you if he was too rough or pressed too hard. He kissed you like you were the center of his universe and it left you practically melting against him.

Your eyes drifted closed and you leaned into him, shivering at the touch of flesh and metal against your face. The golden hand was just that: a hand, no claws in sight, yet somehow the metal always seemed to be warm when he touched you with it. It was no different then as you allowed him to kiss you as much as he pleased, savoring your lover’s nearness.

It was sweet, loving, something that you wouldn’t expect from the normally far more exuberant count who believed in instant gratification, but you certainly weren’t complaining. Instead, you returned his kiss just as sweetly, just as lovingly, your hands resting on his chest where you felt his heart racing beneath your palms, the fabric of his shirt so soft against your skin and warm from his body heat.

When Lucio leaned back at last, that flush lingered on his pale cheeks, the grey of his eyes a thin ring around dark pupils as he seemed to be gauging your reaction. You met his gaze once you came back to yourself, a soft smile forming on your kiss-swollen lips. Your brought your hand up from his chest to caress his cheek.

“What was that for? You sure you don’t want something?” You were teasing, truly. You didn’t mean anything by it save a jest. Yet the way he looked at you with such a keen gaze gave you pause as you regarded the serious expression on his face.

“No reason. I just…wanted to. I saw you sitting here reading and couldn’t resist just coming over and kissing you. I don’t need a reason to kiss you, do I?” His voice was quiet even as he leaned into your tender touch, his eyes drifting closed as your smile widened.

“No, Lucio, you don’t need a reason at all,” you assured him. “You can kiss me whenever you like.”

“You’re different, you know? You’ve always been different right from the start. I never used to care before you came along. I’d kiss people all the time if I thought they were attractive enough. Didn’t matter if I didn’t remember their names later or anything. I could never forget you though. You’re the last person I ever want to have a first kiss with.” His words struck a chord in you as Lucio opened his eyes to look at you. They made your heart soar. His smile was radiant, with some of that boyish charm present despite the fact that he was hardly a boy any longer. Of course a smile like that had to be kissed. It just had to be.

And that was exactly what you did.

**Author's Note:**

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